MASSACRE AT GAZA

In Hebron, people took to the streets in anguish over the Israeli attack [Reuters] Palestinians in the West Bank have demonstrated for unity between the rival factions, Fatah and Hamas, after Israeli air attacks on the Gaza Strip killed more than 155 people and wounded 200 others. Hundreds of Palestinians gathered in the centre of Ramallah in the West Bank on Saturday, some carrying banners reading: "We will not forget you, Gaza." The Israeli bombardment also sparked rallies across the Arab world, including in Amman, the capital of Jordan, and Damascus in Syria. Hezbollah, the Lebanese movement which fought a 33-day war against Israel in the summer of 2006, called for a demonstration in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, later on Saturday. Nour Odeh, Al Jazeera's correspondent in neighbouring Jordan, said: "This is probably one of the most violent Israeli air campaigns against Gaza." "This is a group massacre for our Palestinian people in Gaza" Fawzi Barhoum, Hamas spokesman "Politically speaking, this is devastating... We can see people in Ramallah coming out on the streets, calling on the leaderships in the Palestinian territories to unite, and set aside their differences knowing that that will be difficult, as it has been for the past year and a half. "It will certainly be very embarrassing for Mahmoud Abbas [the Palestinian president], who is engaged in a peace process with Israel, trying to convince a very sceptical public that a political process with Israel can yield results while these bombs are raining on Gaza. "Yasser Abed, an adviser to Abbas speaking in the West Bank said: "In this moment we express our solidarity with all the victims of this aggression. "And we call for an immediate halt and ending of this aggression against the Gaza Strip. "Our leadership and our government are taking measures now in order to help the victims of the aggression." Abbas said he was in "urgent contact" with numerous countries over the raids. Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister in the West Bank, said: "I strongly condemn the Israeli military attack on the Gaza Strip and demand its immediate end. "I am making a series of calls to try to stop the Israeli attack and have called an emergency cabinet meeting." The meeting is to be held at 1300GMT in Ramallah. The Palestinian ministry of health in Ramallah called on its employees to immediately head to government hospitals in the Gaza Strip to help, following statements from Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence minister, saying that the operation "will last as long as necessary". Regional condemnation Amr Moussa, the secretary-general of the Arab League, said that Arab foreign ministers would be meeting in the Egyptian capital either on Sunday or Monday to take a common position on the raids. At least 30 missiles were fired by Israeli aircraft at targets on Saturday [AFP] Moussa told reporters that Libya, the only Arab country on the UN Security Council, would also be seeking an urgent meeting of the council. "It will take a joint Arab position on what is happening and at the same time agree on the steps to be taken," he said. Egypt condemned Israel's raids and said it would keep trying to restore a truce between Israel and Gaza. A presidential statement quoted by the MENA news agency said Egypt held Israel responsible for the deaths and injuries that result from the raids. "Egypt will continue its contacts to prepare an atmosphere conducive to restoring the period of calm and achieving reconciliation between the Palestinian groups." Ahmed Abu Ghait, the Egyptian foreign minister, summoned the Israeli ambassador to express Egypt's rejection to the attacks. Egypt called publicly for restraint by both sides on Thursday when Tzipi Livni, the Israeli foreign minister, came to Cairo for talks with Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president. International condemnation Javier Solana, the EU foreign policy chief, is also calling for an immediate ceasefire. "We are very concerned at the events in Gaza," he said. "We call for an immediate ceasefire and urge everybody to exert maximum restraint." For his part, Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, called for an immediate halt to the "escalation". "The President of the Republic ... strongly condemns the irresponsible provocations which led to this situation as well as the disproportionate use of force," the Elysee Palace said. The statement added that there was "no military solution in Gaza" and called for the "conclusion of a lasting truce". A statement from the Russian foreign ministry said: "Russia believes it is necessary to halt immediately the large-scale acts of force against the Gaza Strip, which have already caused considerable victims and suffering amongst the Palestinian population. "At the same time, we call on the leadership of Hamas to stop firing rocket on Israeli territory," it said, adding that the most important priority now was for the parties to restore a truce. Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for Hamas in Gaza, said: "Today is a holocaust and a massacre day, that Tzipi Livni had publicly campaigned on the regional and international level so she can commit to this Holocaust and this massacre. "This is a group massacre for our Palestinian people in Gaza."

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

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